The Republican journal., 1887-11-10
Byways and Highways in Old Mexico.


| THE STATE OF MoRELOS AND SOMETHING OF
ITS HEROES. CUAtTLA AMILPAS, THE THEA
TIRE OF STIRRING EVENTS. CURE JOSE
MARIA MOREIOs AND HIS CONTEMPORARIES.
A lost ART OF THE ALIIAMBRA PRESERVED
IN MTNlCO BY DESCENDANTS OF THE MOORS.
Correspondence of the journal.
| CUAUTLA. MEN, Oct. 30th. 1t will be a
| long time before the McXicans recover from
| their astonishmcnt at the rapid manner in
which Americans build railroads. More than
siNty-iilc millions of dollars have already been
| invested by American capitalists in the railway
| movements Of Mexico. When a new road is
| to he made swarm Of engineers arryc-some
| Young and full Of theories, others gray with
services clsewherc--and within week succeed
| i'll transforming their raw recruits into hard
working bands, every man of whom abors as
| though he possessed an individual interest in
| the immediate completion of the enterprise
| This is partly due to the fact that Americans
pay higher wages than Mexican aborers ever
before enjoyed, and have a d>ayrecabc habit
| OF promptly diScharging those who 30 not
''eonc to time and partly, 10 doubt, because
these people are great imitators, and ready to
fall into the ways of those around them. The
MENICAN MANNER OF RAILROAD BUILDING
| is diamotrically opposed to the American plan.
| First Il ''concesSion,' or permission to build,
must he obtained from the governments and
| then some point sought out, far distant from
| any other railroad, and the material transport
| ed to that place. 1t would never do to begin
| near the coast, because that would establish a
damaging precedent, contrary to all Mexican
| tradition. BY beginning at the farther cud of
the line. employment is furnished to a great
many carriers and teamst"rS-Whicl, come to
think of it, is really bat simple justice. since
the road will certainly destroy the business they
| inherited from their fatherS,-i business that
| otherwise would descend to their chdrcn's
children. Realizing this. these agsrieved citi-
zens accordingly make stupendous charges,
with the thrifty intent of making Ebay" enough,
while their sun still shines, to last them for
| Years to come.
and capital, but if the builders manage care
fully they will nt least have the satisfaction of
Offending noboil's prcjudices. and-what is
| Of more coE>eIucncc-of receiving the sympl-
thy Of lnl.}n owners and dHiyrmcia proprietors,
| who otherwise might work great harm in Il
| thousand ~ly ways. If dependent wholly on
native workincn. the road will approach COM
pIetion 50 gradually that by and by it will seem
to the good people as if it had always existed; !;
and by hat time he portion of road first built
will need renewi l--perhaps by descendants
of the original workmcn. even to the third
generation. If Yankee railroad projectors do
not fancy this thoroughly Mexican manner of
procedure. they may go ahead on the American
| l'lan-but run their own risks of escaping the
bullet, the Stilcito, or the not less mllr'lerous
Instructions that were so frequently piled upon
the Mexican National and Mexican Central
tracks during their soldier days.
Continuing our tour of observation, ria the
| Morelo> railway, which runs from Mexico city
across the state of Morclos, a distance of S6
mi!e-havng fingered at Ameca-Meca three
weeks. instead of three lays. as first intended.
We Ind ample opportunity for studying this
| smallest of the >i>t"rhuod of Mexican States.
| While chihuahua covers 2l6,S50 square ko-
metres, little Morelos has an area of only
about -four thousand: but i'll point of popull-
ton she j. less than Go.000 behind her largest
sister. ami her cities are centuries older. To
the aorth and west of it lies the state of Mex
icowhich contains the Capital, in Federal
District. like our District of Columbia: on the
south is Guerrero, and on the east the great
State Of Pueba. Being in the very heart Of
IuE VOLCANIC REGION.
il j, extremely mountainous, and its people
like others WAC dwell among the heiyhts-are
patriotic and independents TO 4 degree which
has caused considerable trouble. Branching
out from Popocatipcti and INtacchuatl are
several spurs ant ranges including that of Frio
.AuiillaS, the peaks Of Oeotlan. and the Sierra
tie Ajusco, with It's extinct volcano.
In the fertile valleys. especially along the
| Curui!n and tucrilavrl rivers. much sugar and
coffee is grown, and tropical fruit, and flowers
flourish at their best. Though gold and silver
arc hnown to exist in the hills, mining indus
try is entirely dormant, owing to lack of energy
and capital. Wheat, corn and rice are officially
quoted among the products of the State, be-
sides alcohol marble. cinnabar and kaoline.
| The state supports eighty-SeVen primary
schools, with an average daily attendance of
1000 pupils. There are besides couple of
colleges, electric lights and horsc-ear> in the
principal cities, teegraph, uild telephones. an
admirable system of watCr-WorkS. and other
di,lnots of q, iiilutjon.
But for ]iY-breakng nomenclature the viii
lagcs OF MovcUS bear OF the palm. Imagine
yourself rln- peacefully alone. through
charming mountain scenery softenctl by tropi-
cal vcrdurc. While a ticndiSh brakeman perpct-
uall! starlcs you by shouting such names as
locapiNtla. .lantetel"o. Jojatla 'Tlayacapam
Nochilcpec. Tlaltzapan. Yantepec. Icazbace-
la. toah,liNtla! and so on. through l05 villages,
twelve toWn~ and five cities, found within the
five districts into which the State is divided.
The taxable property of MorcloS is officially
valued at five and a half millions. The capital
and chief city is Cuernavaca. (Which we visited
some time ago. one OF the lovciest places in
the Republic. 1t has a population of about
l,.eoD The Governors palace once the
abode of Herman Cortez. and the celebrated
agricultural college occupies the residence of
miilcky MaXilniii;n.
| jonacatepec and Iautcpcc-cach with about
5000 inhabitants, and Tetecaa with $500, are
important because of their sugar mills. which
between them turn out 14,0oo kilogrammes per
annum. valued at nearly two millions of dol
lars. While government lands in some portion
of Mexico sell as low four cents per acre,
that of Morelos is valued at IS - cents.
One sunny October afternoon, bound for
CUArTIA AMiLPAs.
the terminus of the railroad. we rounded Il
sharp curve where the Rio Cuautla forces its
way through the mountains, and behell it.
white and glittcring. in the valley below. This
delightful old town. which was conquered by
the >paniard> in l.2l has now less than eight
thousand inhabitants. though four centuries
ago it could boast twenty times that number.
In the old days ii was called Qu0nhUi, 'bcau-
tiful hills" an appropriate name, given by its
founders. the Tlahuicos.
To see the fashions of this section, one
should 60 to the Alcmada of Cuautla about
sunset. at which hour the bellies and beauX,
the solid responsibility and the de1Ri mantle of
both SEXES are wont to promenade under its
ancient elm trees or lounge upon the adobe
| benches. Mexican ladies who can afford it have
a great partiaiity for satin gowns, and it is no
uncommon sight upon Il weekday afternoon
or Sunday morning. to meet bellies, both single
and married, attrcd i'll pale blue, pink or law
endcr satin. is for il ball or opera, with naked
arms and uncovered head. One day in this
AlcmaIa ! encount cred Il most remarkable
baby, out on dress parade. in the arms of its
Indian nurse. The tiny aristocrat Wore two
robes, one very short and the other very long,
| trimmed all around WIN very Wlut pallNSS OF
yellow satin ribbon. Upon its head was an
immense turban of white satin, with three
white feathers upon one side and huge punches
of pink roses and yellow ribbons on the other.
Until the recent completion of the Moreos
railway, there had not been even dUigencia
communication with Cuauta, and 50 the an
cient customs have remained comparatively
unnterfcred with. Among other objects of
interest is Il very quaint old church, in which
is Il distinctivcly Aztec Chrst-har, eyes,
compile Nion. all perfectly Indian. Upon festa
days this figure is decorated with a bu-tght-
ers cloak of scarlet velvet and white cotton
brccches ruffled with lace.
The sugar product hereabout> is very large,
this district being one of the great sources of
. supply for Central Mexico. The tourist should
visit the CoahuiXtla hacienda, not far from the
} city, the property of Senor Manuel Mendora
Cortina, and the sugar mills of Santa Ines Ra-
banio, belonging to the Robado brothers.
The hotels of Cuauta are the 'IIaller," kept
by a Texan of that name, and the "Nicolas
, Zayas,'' run by German-and it is difficult to
tell which is the worst.
In its day, sleepy old Cuauta has been the
THEATRE OF STIRRING EVENTS.
f for here it was that Curate Observation-Disclosures
. immediate successor-shut himself up with q
troop of insurgents, until Callaja, the Spanish
general, bcsieged the place so effectively, that
, the little party, in dire extremity for want OF
food, abandoned the position under the friend.